My Angel
by gleeme33
Summary: Sequel to 'Fallen Angel': Finn and Rachel's relationship has already concurred life and death, so high school should be a breeze, right? Wrong. And when a loophole in there loophole shows up, will it really be to late?
1. Author's note and Full summary

_Author's Note_

Hi everyone, it's me, gleeme33! This fanfic is the sequel to my fic "_**Fallen Angel**_", so if this looks interesting to you, read "_**Fallen Angel**_" first, please. I'll be sure to update to this story as much as I can and as fast as I can. I hope that fans of "_**Fallen Angel**_" will read this fic, but I also hope to get new fans for both this story and the one preceding! Thanks again to the amazing reviewers of "_**Fallen Angel**_", without them this fic would never happen. Thanks and enjoy! **:)**

_Full Summary_

Sequel to '_Fallen Angel_': Finn and Rachel's relationship has already concurred life and death, so high school should seem like a breeze, right? Wrong. Once the people from Rachel's past come to school, things will get complicated. And when a new loophole in their loophole shows up, will it be too late to for Finn to save Rachel this time? Will death really have to do them part, or can their love concur all?

_Couples_

**Finchel! **Quick, possible Artina, possible Wemma (more may come in later)

_Friendships_

Quinn/Rachel, Finn/Puck, Puck/Santana, Quinn/Finn, Mercedes/Kurt, Rachel/OC (Caroline) Quinn/OC (Caroline) Finn/OC (Mark) Puck/OC (Mark) (more may come in later)

Reviews are LOVE!

**So…what do you think? Ideas? Like it? Hate it? Click that blue button and tell me! :) **


	2. Secerts

**Okay, I know I've kept you wait for a longer time then I should have, and I am sorry. I had a lot of summer work to catch up on for school, and I now I'm finished with it! Oh and yesterday, I had what was possibly the worst day ever in the history of all days! But, whatever. Okay here's chapter one, hope you like it! R&R please! Thanks and enjoy! :)**

"_It's immortality, my darlings_."- _Pretty Little Liars_ (the TV show, not the books)

"_Friends share secrets! That's what keeps us close!_" –_ Pretty Little Liars_ (the TV show, not the books)

_Secrets, secrets are no fun_

_That's why they're never shared with everyone._

_You can run from your fears,_

_But you can't hide from the truth,_

_And secrets, secrets will find you. _–A poem I wrote myself called: '_**Secrets, Secrets**__.'_

_Chapter One_

_Rachel's POV_

Okay, Caroline needed to calm down.

You see, Caroline Johnson is a type of person who likes to create theories. Based on what, you might ask? I honestly have no idea at all. But anyway, Caroline was always coming up with a new theory, which soon were named 'Caroline-schemes'. The name just kind of stuck, because all and all, her '_theories_' really were more of '_schemes_' when you think about it. Like that time we convinced her older sister to get us into an R-rated movie, or that time we fed her dog burnt, blackened cookies and got away with it. Caroline just had a way with schemes…

And right now, she really needed to stop hyperventilating.

"Caroline, if you don't calm down I swear to God, I'll-"

"Rach!" She yelled interrupting me mid-sentence. "You don't get it!"

"What's not to get? So you lost your diary, big whoop. We'll get you a new one."

"Rachel, _everything _was in that diary. _Everything_!"

Okay, this was bad. Remember how I said that Caroline liked to create schemes? Well, her schemes didn't always have the best intentions for everyone. I'd be able to talk her out of some things, but Caroline Johnson was an insider. She knew a lot of things…too many things for her own good. She knew something dirty about almost everyone. Why? Because she just _did_. She was the popular cheerleader and the girl who you wanted to be your best friend. She had her ways.

She had her ways-that is, about finding out everything from everyone. Caroline liked to play games. To some, she was a celebrity, a person you'd break your back to hang out with, a person you'd do anything to have your picture in the yearbook with. And she knew it too. She knew it too well for her own good.

Like I said, she liked to play games, and sometimes she played games with people too. Why? Because she could. Her power allowed her to, so why not? Playing games was fun after all! But after a while, Caroline had played too many games, too many for her own good. And we of all people should know: playing games can get you killed.

To me, Caroline wasn't just the popular girl who everyone wanted to be, she was my best friend. Since, like, forever, we've always been there for each other…through everything. To me, Caroline was, well, my sister! She was the first person I called when I got my braces off and the person I always sit next to at lunch. Ever since we were five and bonded over five year old stuff, we'd been joined at the hip! She was my sister: the person I cried to, the person I laughed to, and the person who cried and laughed to me…

But now we aren't five anymore. Now playing games means more then checkers and bingo. Now boys don't have germs and jealously is more powerful then someone else already wearing that pretty dress you oh-so wanted. Now was high school.

So yeah, this was bad.

"What are we going to do! ?" Caroline threw her hands up in the air. "Rach, if someone gets a hold of that diary…"

"Don't freak out! Don't freak out!" I yelled over her. "It's not going to turn into a problem. We just have to find it, okay? Where did you last have it?"

"In my locker."

"You brought it to _school_?"

"I thought my cat was reading it!"

In tandem, we both stared at Caroline's orange tabby cat, Tiger.

"Really, Caroline? _Really_?"

She shrugged. "But don't worry, I have a _plan_."

"Oh God _no_!"

"Oh God _yes_!"

"Whatever. Hit me with it."

"Okay. You know how the Black and White Ball is in the gym? Well, the gym is an easy asses point to almost anywhere in the school. When we go to the dance tonight, we can just grab it before anyone sees anything. Simple, right?"

"And what if we can't find it?"

"Well, then we're dead. If anyone finds that diary, they'll know everything about everyone! They'll…they'll…they'll knew all of my information! They won't know what to do; the secrets will get out…"

"Wow Caroline."

"Stop it! This is serious! Everyone can't know everyone else's secrets! That's what secrets are _for_!"

List of things Caroline likes:

One, schemes

Two, games

And three, _secrets_.

Secrets were to Caroline what appluse was and still is to me…she needed them to live. It's not like she was the girl who found out secrets and then told everyone; actually she only told me. She just liked to know them for herself. She liked being an insider. She thought secrets were 'vital' and 'of the essence'. Why? Because secrets are like the rule books of games. Well, Caroline's games anyway.

Yes, you could say that Caroline Marie Johnson was a two-sided person…half trustworthy, confidence-building best friend, half secret keeping, game playing, popular cheerleader…and you honestly never knew when each side came out to play.

But it's not 1980 anymore. It's 2010 now. And since Finn solved the prophecy, we all have to live in 2010. Yeah, _all _of us. I guess there's some weird, cosmic 'it's all of us or none of us' rule. So now me, Caroline, Mark, Lucy, Kelly, and Justin have to make it as normal people again…and you could say that that's a blessing, because it is.

You know the story-we never found the diary, because we never got to. I am _not _telling _that _story again. But now it's 2010, and it might be a different year, but it's still the same WMHS…

And Caroline Marie Johnson is still the same two sided person.


	3. Interesting

**Hello people! So guess what? Today was my first day of school :( it was good seeing my friends and all, but I'm still sad that summer is over! And then after school I had to go to the doctor's for a physical, and then SURPRISE! I had to get shot, and I have a huge fear of needles. :( Now as I am typing this my arm is hurting! Whatever… **

**Sorry for not updating to this story in a while, I'll try my best to update quickly. Thanks and enjoy!**

"_As long as you live, keep learning how to live._"-Lucius Annaeus Seneca

"…_But those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it_…"-Sara Shepard, _Wicked: A Pretty Little Liars Novel_

"_A loving heart is the truest wisdom._"-Charles Dickens

_Chapter Two_

_Rachel's POV_

"So the trick is," Finn leaned across the table with a grin smacked on his face. "You use more bananas then peanut butter. It's _all _about the peanut butter to banana ratio. Oh, and sometimes," Finn looked from side to side, as if to make sure no one was within ear-shot. Once he did this three times, he whispered: "I dab some honey on there for flavor."

"That's cute." I smiled.

"But it's _so _true! _Jimmy's_ may not exactly be a _fancy-shmancy_ diner, but the peanut butter and banana sandwiches are amazing if you know how to order them! My mom told me that my dad always made her peanut butter banana and honey sandwiches so I _always _eat them instead of dull, boring, old peanut butter and jelly sandwiches."

"I love that you care about things like that. It's kind of…adorable."

"_You're _kind of adorable."

Our waitress eventually arrived with Finn's peanut butter and banana sandwich. The waitress's name tag read:_ Gina_. Gina had bags under her eyes, and looked like she was unhappily sleep-walking. Her bleach-blonde hair was in a messy bun which made you think that she had just rolled out of bed. Finn, on the other hand, was bouncing out of his seat with happiness.

"Anything else, sir?" Gina grumbled.

"Um…not right now. But I'll let you know." Finn replied. Gina made no remark, and slumped away.

You see, both Finn and Puck had gotten summer jobs at _Sheets-N-Things_, working for Mr. Shu's ex-wife. She's kind of crazy, but Finn said the job paid well, and he was as happy as ever to have some money in his pocket. I turned to my right and looked out the big window. The sky was gray and it was still pouring rain. Great last day of summer. The rain slowly but surely pitter-pattered on the window, making a soft drone.

"_Yes_!" Finn cheered, mangling this sandwich open. He picked up the bottle of honey on the table and squeezed some on top of the peanut butter and the bananas before smashing it back together. "This is _exactly _what we need before school." He said after he swallowed his first bite. "It's a miracle sandwich. It takes all of your anxiety away!"

"You really think that's the sandwich, or do you just _think _it's the sandwich?"

"What? _Of course _it's the sandwich! I think that I think it is because it is…I think." I laughed at that. Finn was always saying the cutest things.

"So…" I started. "First day of school tomorrow…are you excited?"

Finn shrugged. "More like revolted. You want of bite of this? It's really good!"

"Oh, alright." I said, taking a bite of Finn's famous sandwhich. It actually was really good. Getting back to the topic of school, I said: "Oh, come on! The first day won't be all _that_ bad…but…"

"But?" Finn asked.

"I feel I should warn you."

"About your old friends?"

"Not all of them are my friends."

"Oh really, how bad can they be?"

"Bad, Finn." I paused, and then repeated: "_Bad_."

"Well, what are they like?"

"Well," I bit my lip. "You already know Caroline and Mark. The three people that you haven't seen yet are Kelly, Lucy and Justin-"

"Wait!" Finn interrupted. "Justin as in the Justin you when out with?"

"I _wasn't_ going out with him! He just asked me to the dance. I can personally _assure_ you that it started and _ended_ there."

"Well I don't like him already! Let me guess…he's super-smart _and_ was the quarterback of the football team _and _he's a musician _and _he loves puppies _and_-"

"_And _you're totally wrong." I cut him off. "First of all, Justin was _not _all that smart and wasn't even _on_ the football team and…and I'm not really sure if he likes puppies or not…"

"I like puppies."

"I know you do!"

"Okay, okay…what about the other two people?"

"Well Lucy was always into art and painting and all that. Seriously, I don't think I've ever _not_ seen her with a paintbrush in her hand. And Kelly…she's…well, she's kind of like a girl version of Puck."

"_That _should be interesting." Finn laughed.

"Tomorrow is gonna be…interesting."

And interesting it was...

**Don't worry, I'm not skipping out on their first day...that'll be next chapter! So...review? :)**


	4. Back To School

**Hey! I'm sorry for not updating all that quickly. I promise to be as good as I can with the updates. Also, happy Labor Day to my fellow Americans out there! Oh and sorry this chapter is a little shorter, I'm trying to keep you guys wanting more here! Thanks and enjoy.**

"_Just because we've been dealt a certain hand, it doesn't mean that we can't choose to rise above - to conquer the boundaries of a destiny that none of us wanted. To try to retain whatever essential humanity we can._" -Stephenie Meyer, _Twilight_

"_It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but even more to stand up to your friends._" –J.K. Rowling, _The __Harry Potter__ Series_

"…_Oh my God. It hit me like a tsunami then, how perfect he was for me, how no one else would ever, could ever, be so perfect for me, how he was everything I could possibly hope for, as a friend, boyfriend, maybe even more. He was it for me. There would be no more looking. I really, really loved him, with a whole new kind of love I'd never felt before, something that made every other kind of love I'd ever felt feel washed out and wimpy in comparison_…" –James Patterson, _The __Maximum Ride__ Series_

_Chapter Three_

_Finn's POV_

"I _hate _that we're back in school! This _sucks_!" Puck yelled, slamming his fist against a random locker. "This _sucks_, this _sucks_, this _sucks_, this-"

"-_you _suck!" Quinn cut him off. "Seriously Puck, _jeesh_!" She stamped her foot then, like a little child who wasn't getting her way. Quinn knew very well that Puck would give her her way, no matter what.

"Okay, what do you want?" Puck asked Quinn, catching on.

"Who says I want something?"

Puck just looked at her.

"Really!" Quinn added.

Puck kept on staring, and after a few more seconds, he raised one of his eyebrows.

"Okay, okay." Quinn held her arms behind her back innocently and puckered her lips. "Can I have ten dollars?"

"For _what_?" Puck asked. "What do you need to borrow _more_ money for?"

"Pompoms are five dollars each this year!" Quinn grabbed Puck's arm and put her head on his shoulder. "I _can't _be head Cheerio with pompoms! So…ten dollars?"

Puck sighed: "Alright, alright…" He grabbed his wallet out of his pocket and took out ten dollars. Quinn squeaked with happiness.

"_Thank you_!" She peeped. "I _love_ you!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Are you gonna pay me back?"

"Of course!"

"Uh-huh…" Puck cut sarcastically.

"Really, really! I will! I promise!"

"Really Quinnie? Really?"

"_Really_! And it's not like the money isn't going to a good cause! I _need_ two new pompoms if I'm gonna be Head Cheerio, and I-"

"-Don't count on it, honey." A knew voice said. A girl with blond hair and bold, icy-blue eyes came walking up to us. She motioned for me to move over; apparently it was her locker that I was standing against.

"_Excuse _me?" Quinn hissed. "What are you implying?" The blond girl brushed her hand smoothly across her cheerleading uniform, and then slyly shot Quinn a look, as if she no longer had any interest in talking at all.

"All I'm saying is," The girl said in a high soprano. "Don't count yourself in just yet. There's a new Head Cheerio in town." She didn't even give Quinn, or Puck, or I a passing glance as she skipped away.

"What the heck was _that_?" Quinn demanded when the mysterious girl was out of sight. "What the- How the-"She didn't finish that thought. "I am Quinn freakin' Fabray! Head Cheerio, President of the Celibacy club, part of Glee club, and not to mention one of the most popular girls in school! And…and some newbie thinks she can just waltz in here and…no. _No_. _No_!" I walked away, not wanting to be here when Quinn explodes. I walked over to Rachel, seeing her out of the corner of my eye.

"There you are!" I said when I found her.

"Hey!" She said when she saw me. "I haven't seen you all day! What's your schedule like?"

"I don't think we have that many classes together." I answered sadly.

"Bummer. Give me one second, okay?" She asked. Then she did an abrupt turn and looked at someone who was on the other side of her. "What is your _problem_?" She asked the mystery person. "It's your first day and you're _already _making trouble?"

"It's what I do," said a high, girly voice. I didn't see her, but I could tell she shrugged.

"Just…don't make enemies in the wrong places, okay? I mean, really, Quinn Fabray? There's no way."

"Enemies? I'm thinkin' more about _alliances_…or maybe even some new followers. And Rach, don't you remember my motto? Where there's a want, there's a way."

"Seriously, you, like, just got here. Maybe focus on _school _for once…?"

There was silence, and then both girls looked at each other, and started laughing at the same time.

"Oh yeah," Rachel caught her breath. "Finn, this is Caroline. Caroline, this is Finn."


	5. Popular

**So thanks so, so, so much to all of you amazing people who actually bother to look at this story-you amaze me.**

**And if anyone cares: ****I have an idea for my next story, which I'll post whenever I finish one up next. It'll be a Sci-Fi fic, loosely based on **_The Adoration of Jenna Fox_** by: Mary E. Pearson. I'm not really sure who I'll center it on though, but it'll most likely be a Glee fic. I'm thinking about maybe making it a Seddie fic, (that's Freddie and Sam from ICarly) but I'll probably just make it a Glee fic. I usually center my stories on Rachel, because I love Finchel, and since I'm a girl I like to center things more on girls. I'll either center it on Rachel, or maybe even center it on Quinn and have it be a Quick piece; with Finchel on the side...I'm just not sure what to do with it yet. Please tell me if you're interested, and help me choose what to do with it! :)**

"_I've improved a lot, not only physically, but also I believe in myself more. I believe I can do __it_." –Caroline Wozniacki

"_If you can learn to love yourself and all the flaws, you can love other people so much better. And that makes you so happy_." –Kristin Chenoweth

Galinda:"_You're whole life is going to change and all because of me! Now…I wrote a book, 'How to be Popular'. Now I've put together a top ten list I hope will help you. Elphie, every day...shower. I mean who knows? Maybe some of that green's gonna come off! Deodorant Elphie, nobody likes a stinky witch! I think we've covered the hair, we'll get to that. Clean underclothes...that's all I'm gonna say. Look at your posture! That's no way to be popular! Bed made, room straightened, we've done that. Colors blended. The most important thing to have to make yourself popular is to keep your beautiful smile!_"_  
_

Elphaba:"_Um…Thank you...?_"

Galinda:"_Oh, __You're welcome!_" –_Wicked the Musical _**(Kristin Chenoweth's and Idina Menzel's little ad lib moment during their last show.)**

_Chapter Four_

_Finn's POV_

"Oh yeah!" The blond said. "I remember you! How could I forget?"

"I don't know." I shrugged. "Maybe if you had short term memory loss?"

"Oh, even if I had short term memory loss, I'd remember you! I mean, Rach-y…" Caroline spun to look at Rachel. "Ya' did good! I mean look how _C-U-T-E hot _this one is, and-"

"-_Oh my God_ look!" Rachel stopped Caroline and pointed in a different direction.

"I don't see anything…"

"Um, yeah, it's down the hall! Why don't you go find it?"

"'K!" Caroline skipped off, and Rachel let out a breath.

"Sorry about her blabbermouth…" She said. "She can be kind of…a _gossip girl_…"

"It's fine! At least she likes me, right?"

"Yeah…" Rachel looked down, and then deadpanned: "Right…"

"Hey, c'mon! Cheer up!" She made no reaction. "Will you at least smile for me?" I smiled big.

Rachel made the corners of her mouth droop down in a frown.

"Good try!" I laughed, and it made her laugh too. Then the bell rang: it was time for first period.

"So I guess I'll see you later?" She asked.

"What do think?"

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

Finally, it was third period: the best time of the day! Why? Glee club, duh! We had practices and everything over the summer, but this is our first in-school practice.

As I walked down the hall, I saw Karofsky threatening to pour a slushy on Kurt and Artie. He didn't do it, so I didn't have to punch him. Nobody messes with Finn Hudson's friends and doesn't get punched in the face! I saw Rachel walking in our direction with Caroline following her, probably lost. She must have seen what could have almost been a slushy epidemic, because she gasped.

"What the (insert swear word of choice here) was that?" She gasped.

"It could have just been a slushy facial!" Kurt explained.

"What's that?"

"But…you're a cheerleader. You mean you've never heard of the term 'slushy facial' before?" Artie asked. Caroline shook her head 'no'.

"You're new here, right?" Kurt inquired. "Where are you from?"

"Oh, she's not from here!" Rachel jumped. "Sh-she's from…um…"

"I-I'm from…New York!" Caroline added. "Yeah, yeah…New York City!" There were numerous '_oohs_' and '_ahs_'.

"That's so cool!" Kurt squeaked. "Why'd you move here?"

"Oh, um…ya' know! Why do anyone and everyone move these days?" The blond flipped her hair and smiled big. Rachel wasn't lying when she said Caroline could talk her way out of things.

"Well, c'mon guys!" I said. "We better get going."

"Ooh, where are you going?" Caroline asked Rachel.

"Glee club." Rachel responded. "I don't assume _you _want to come…"

"Umm…actually, maybe I _will _tag along. There are some things that I _want _to do differently."

"Well…okay." Rachel replied. "But I don't know if you'll like it."

We all walked in and took our seats, just like last year. Mr. Shuster was already in the room, and as we walked in, he counted heads just as he always seems to do.

"Oh, Mr. Shu, this is Caroline. She's new here."

"Oh great!" He said. "Welcome to McKinley, Caroline!"

"Thank you! I was thinking about auditioning for Glee club. Rachel here speaks so dang _highly _of it, so why not?"

"Well, we'd be happy to have you! All you have to do is sing something, and you're in! Whenever you're ready…" As Mr. Shu said this, Caroline pranced up to the front of the room. Then she smiled, and started to sing:

"_Whenever I see someone less fortunate than I,  
And let's face it, who isn't less fortunate than I?  
My tender heart tends to start to bleed.  
And when someone needs a makeover,  
I simply have to take over!  
I know, I know exactly what they need!_

_And even in your case,_  
_Though it's the toughest case I've yet to face,_  
_Don't worry, I'm determined to succeed!_  
_Follow my lead,_  
_And yes indeed, you will be..._

_POPULAR!_  
_You're gonna be popular!_  
_I'll teach you the proper poise,_  
_When you talk to boys,_  
_Little ways to flirt and flounce,_  
_ooh!_  
_I'll show you what shoes to wear!_  
_How to fix your hair!_  
_Everything that really counts to be..._

_POPULAR!_  
_I'll help you be popular!_  
_You'll hang with the right cohorts,_  
_You'll be good at sports,_  
_Know the slang you've got to know._  
_So let's start,_  
_'Cause you've got an awfully long way to go!" _She paused, giggled, and then sang:

"___Don't be offended by my frank analysis,  
Think of it as personality dialysis,  
Now that I've chosen to become a  
Pal, a sister and advisor,  
There's nobody wiser!  
Not when it comes to... _

_POPULAR!_  
_I know about popular._  
_and with an assist from me,_  
_to be who you'll be,_  
_instead of dreary who you were..._  
_Well, are._  
_There's nothing that can stop you,_  
_from becoming popu-ler... lar..._

_la la, la la!_  
_We're gonna make you pop-u-lar!_

_When i see depressing creatures,_  
_With unprepossessing features,_  
_I remind them on their own they have_  
_To - think - of_  
_Celebrated heads of state,_  
_Or specially great communicators!_  
_Did they have brains or knowledge?_  
_Don't make me laugh!_

_They were POPULAR!_  
_Please!_  
_It's all about popular._  
_It's not about aptitude,_  
_It's the way you're viewed,_  
_So it's very shrewd to be,_  
_Very very popular_  
_like ME!" _She paused for a moment, smiled at us, gave Quinn a sharp look, and then continued:

"_And though you protest,  
Your disinterest,  
I know clandestinely,  
You're gonna grin and bear it!  
Your new found popularity!  
Aah!_

_La la, la la!_  
_You'll be popular!_  
_Just not quite as popular_

_As ME!_"

Everyone clapped happily. She was good: not Rachel-worthy at all, but good. There was just a…sort of spark to her that made you feel like you should; no…you _have to _clap for her…and I could tell everyone else in the room felt that way, too.

"That was wonderful!" Mr. Shu called. "Welcome to New Directions, Caroline!"


	6. Unadulterated Loathing

**Hey guys. Really, really, really, **_**really**_** sorry I was MIA for a while. I have a bad cold…well, **_**now **_**it's just a bad cold, a couple of days ago I could barley get up out of bed! And now I'm pretty much better, it's just like a bad cold now, so…I'm all better! And more good news: **_**Glee**_** comes back on Tuesday! YAY! I'm **_**so**_** excited! :) How could you **_**not**_** be **_**so**_** excited? :) **

**And more good news: My new story is getting better! I'm pretty much planning it out right now, so, it's all good. I'll post a sneak-peak on my profile soon! And also: I just finished all of the books in the **_**Pretty Little Liars**_** series by Sara Shepard! Man, that ending was good! I'd **_**SO**_** recommend them! I **_**loosely **_**based one of my OC characters in this fic on the character of Alison from **_**Pretty Little Liars**_**, virtual cookie if you can guess which one it is! Oh, and the song lyrics I used below are **_What Is This Feeling _**from "Wicked". Thanks and enjoy! **

"_Strangers see you the way you want them to see you. But you can't fool your friends…that's what makes them friends..._" –Sara Shepard, _Pretty Little Liars_

"_Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened._" –Dr. Seuss

"_You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough._" –Mae West

_Chapter Five_

_Quinn's POV_

_**Welcome Back, Cheerios! **_

That's what the huge, overly embellished banner which currently hangs neatly above the gym entrance reads, if you look close enough and don't get sidetracked by all of the larger-then-life décor that engulfs the little words as it tries oh-so hard to make a statement. Those poor, three little words! They are barley readable anymore.

_**Welcome**_

A greeting…a _friendly _greeting, I might add. A greeting? For us? Really? That's so sweet! Not that Sue or anything to do with the Cheerios is in any way _sweet_. More like…_bittersweet_…And now that I think of it, not much of it is…_friendly_, either…

_**Back**_

As in, again…as in, 'Oh, you know the drill! You've been here before!' As in…for another time. As in…none of this is new. You've got this; you can do this in your sleep! Is '_back_' when used that way a…confidence booster? This _that _what that word is trying to say when you read it in this kind of sentence?

_**Cheerios!**_

Oh, how I _loath_ that word! It's just so…so…so _clichéd_! Yeah, that's the word, _clichéd_! It's stereotypical. It's hackneyed. It's _clichéd_, my dear readers.

_Clichéd_.

You should learn to fear the cliché. It's dangerous, and not in the fun way…trust me, I should know. As I looked again at the placard as a whole, my eyes-just as anyone's would be-were drawn to the decorations, not the words…and certainly not the statement. Those words…they're so…little. And…it's not _right_! They're just so completely overpowered by the jazzy festoon that they can't even get they're point across…when already, they're so…small. They're misfits. Underdogs.

_Underdogs_…

As I look to my right, Santana and Brittany are looking at me as if I've zoned out completely, and by this time I'm on a totally different planet then they are.

"Aren't you coming, Q?" Santana asked. I looked at her, feeling a little sick.

"I…um…"

"Are you nervous 'cause of that new girl?" Britt asked.

"_What_?" I demanded. "Of course not! I'm Quinn freakin' Fabray for crying out loud!"

"_Yeah_!" Santana nodded. "Now _that _is the Q I know! Meet us in there, k?"

"Yeah, I'll see ya' in there."

"'K!" Brittany doesn't even flinch as she walks into the gym, where sure enough, Sue is inspecting everything from the giddy, hopeful girls to the molecules of dust in the corners. Santana shrugged, shuttered, took a deep breath, waited a beat or two, and _then _and _only then _did she walk in, holder her head high.

"Hey!" A new voice said. I spun around, and, sure enough, the voice came from that new girl who's name I don't care enough to remember. "You're Rachel's friend…Quinn, right?" She asked, acting innocent. I rolled my eyes. Like she didn't know _my _name!

"Yeah," I said flatly. "Hi."

"Hi!" She repeats, happily.

_What is this feeling,  
So sudden and new?  
I felt the moment_

_I laid eyes on you;_

_My pulse is rushing;  
My head is reeling;  
My face is flushing;  
What is this feeling?_

For some unknown reason, her happiness annoyed me. How can she _be _that peppy right before Tryouts? Didn't she know what she was getting herself into? The next thing I know, she looked at me with a look that I can only describe as…_sympathetic_. Hey, whoa, wait a second! _Sympathetic_! ?

_Fervid as a flame,  
Does it have a name?  
Yes! Loathing  
Unadulterated loathing  
For your face;  
Your voice;  
Your clothing;  
Let's just say - I loathe it all!_

She looked at me as if she could she right through me with her evil, piercing, blue eyes and I tried my best to hold my ground. Then, she looked at me almost like she was saying 'I understand'. What was _that _about? And then…then she had this smirk on her face as if saying 'I-know-something-you-don't-and-I'm-so-going-to-use-it-against-you. I really, _really_ wanted to slap that little smirk right off her face.

_Every little trait, however small  
Makes my very flesh begin to crawl  
With simple utter loathing  
There's a strange exhilaration  
In such total detestation  
It's so pure, so strong!  
Though I do admit it came on fast  
Still I do believe that it can last  
And I will be loathing  
Loathing you  
My whole life long!_

"So," she said when she finally spoke. "Good luck in there."

"Yeah," I said dryly. "You too."

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

_Rachel's POV_

Right now, I'm sitting in Miss Pillsbury's office with Caroline, Quinn, and Finn. Why, you ask? I honestly don't even know. The only thing I know is that when Finn and I were taking a shortcut to the parking lot through the gym, Quinn and Caroline were attacking each other. Once we broke it up, Sue said that Finn and I were 'making a mockery of her glorious display of sportsmanship and not to mention teamwork' and we had to come here.

Quinn and Caroline jumped to kiss up to Sue, but she said that they had to come here to in order to 'work out how to create a sense of unity'. Before they met us here, Sue named Quinn the new Head Cheerio, and said Caroline could be just under her, so if anything happens to Quinn then _she'd_ be Head Cheerio, and that's when Caroline tried to break Quinn's ankle.

So, here we are.

"So," Miss Pillsbury said, looking up at us as she finished polishing her framed picture of Mr. Shuster. "What brings you four here?"

Both Quinn and Caroline told their side of the story, in less-then-perfect detail. When Quinn told it, she made sure that she made herself look like the helpless injured party, and when Caroline told it…well, it was the other way around.

"Okay, okay…" Miss P was a little stunned by now. "Why do you girls thing that all happened?"

"Because I _loath _her!" Caroline spat.

"But _why_?" Miss P added.

"Because she's a (insert swear word of choice here)!" Quinn cut in.

"Quinn, language!" Miss Pillsbury corrected. Quinn just rolled her eyes as if she wasn't interested.

"I just don't get why _we're_ here…" Finn whispered.

"Yeah," I added. "Why _are _we here?"

"Well what do you guys think of this whole thing?" Miss P suggested. "Why do you guys think it happened?"

"Look Miss P," Finn started. "This is very, very similar to what happens when one lit stick of dynamite meets another lit stick of dynamite. You're just gonna get a bigger _BOOM!_"

"Um…th-thank you for that, Finn, that was um…very…insightful…"

"Yes," Finn nodded curtly. "Yes it was."

**Review? Please? Please? :)**


	7. Caroline's Confessions

**Yes I know that I haven't updated to this story in forever and a half, but inspiration has struck…a little bit! So, sorry for it being shorter, but it's just this chapter… But seriously guys, this story isn't getting as many reviews as I thought it would, and I really don't want to have to do this, but I have a bunch of other fic ideas that I could write up, so I guess if nobody likes this story, I'll just pull the plug on it…but that would make me very, very sad :( Thanks and enjoy.**

Spencer: "_I wonder… when you die, are you beautiful forever?_"

Alison: "_Oh, please Spencer…the only way to do that is to die young, leave a beautiful corpse._"

Emily: "_Don't joke about stuff like that, Alison!_"

Alison: "_Who's joking?_"

Aria: "_Is that really how you want to go, Ali?_"

Alison: "_Well, not just yet girls…not just yet…_"

Hanna: "_Ali...don't say things like that..._"

Alison: "_Girls, we should share things like this all the time. Because your my friends, and I trust you with my life_." _–_Pretty Little Liars

_Chapter Six_

_Quinn's POV_

"Um, Finn, that was kind of…random…"

"But it's true!" Finn protested.

"Well, I guess I could be a lit stick of dynamite!" Caroline laughed. This whole time, she and Rachel were giving each other nearly invisible signals. Miss P must have picked up on these by now, because she said:

"Girls, is there something either of you would like to say?"

"No, Miss Pillsbury." Rachel said right away.

"_I _have something to say!" Caroline added.

"Caroline, _don't_-" Rachel started to say, but Caroline cut her off quickly.

"No, Rach! Don't you think someone has to know?-"

"_I _know." I whispered, catching on before Caroline blurted out their secret. "I know everything, Caroline. Rachel told me."

"You…_do_?" She murmured.

"Yeah." I said. "Someone knows."

"Girls," Miss P said. "If there's something important you think I should know-"

"Miss Pillsbury, I have something to say!" Caroline repeated. Rachel looked at her as if she was about to stab her in the back. "Th-the truth is…" She paused, and then said: "The truth is…the truth is I'm not a natural blonde!"

Finn gasped, totally not catching on: "You're _not_?"

"Nope," Caroline said, popping the '_p_' sound. "I am not a natural blonde! And…and I've been living a lie! Um, um yes…yes that's right, I've been living a lie!" Now Caroline slammed her fist down on Miss P's desk. "A lie I tell you! I've never expected the fact that I'll never be a natural blonde…so, um, um…um thank you, Miss Pillsbury, for, um…for helping me accept the fact that I can't spend my life hiding behind hair dye!"

Wow…Caroline should be a lawyer or something. And I thought Rachel was the drama queen!

"Wait…" Finn finally said once we were walking out of Miss Pillsbury's office. "Caroline, you _are _a natural blonde, aren't you?"

"No duh, smart one!" She giggled, then turning to Rachel: "Why didn't you tell me you told _her_?" Caroline rolled her sapphire eyes in my direction.

"It was before you were here." Rachel shrugged. "Besides, why not? Quinn's a friend, and I trust her."

"Thank you!" I spoke up.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Oh…" Caroline spun around, her indigo eyes gleaming. "Look," She said to me. "Sorry I went all…you know, on you before. I guess you're all right. I mean…you stopped me from being…the old me."

"What do you mean, 'the old you'?" I asked her. Caroline sighed, and looked around to make sure no one else was hanging around the halls. She leaned against her locker and said:

"Look, before…before all this happened, I was…well, I went through this, this _phase _I guess you could say. I was still best friends with Rachel and all, and our other best friends Lily and Cristina, but…well, I was becoming kind of…kind of a…for lack of a better word, I was becoming kind of a _b_-"

"Caroline," Rachel cut her off. "If you don't have a better word, don't say it at all."

"Whatever." Caroline recoiled. "But anyone, I was a know-it-all, and I was stuck up, and I was becoming a word that rhymes with 'witch'." She stopped, and then said. "I only out two 'get well soon cards' when I was in the hospital. They were from Lily and Cristina. That's it. And I had…well; I thought I had tons of friends. But…they weren't my friends. They just…used me. For popularity, for protection socially…" She sighed.

"But…you were…shot…" I whispered.

"Yeah, and? You don't think I would have gone down without a fight, do ya'? I fought hard! I _did_! And Rachel did, too. But there's nothing we can do about that now, is there?"

Finn and I shook our heads 'no'. Rachel…smiled.

"No, there's not." Rachel breathed out.

"But, there is one thing we can do now." Caroline said. "We can…we can do better. Well, _I _can do better. And…and I plan to."


	8. OC profiles 1

**Okay so, I've seen a few stories that are of profiles for OCs that the authors create for their stories, so since this story has a lot of them, I've decided to make profiles for this story's OCs! Here are Caroline's and Mark's. I hope you like them, and the others will come once I've introduced them more. Thanks and enjoy.**

**Full name: **Caroline Marie Johnson

**Portrayed By: **Sasha Pieterse (when her hair is blonder)

**Proffered Name: **Caroline

**Gender: **Female

**DOB**: January 20th, 1964

**Height: **Well she's kind of on the shorter side, but not as short as Rachel…

**Weight: **Well she's really skinny…

**Hair Color: **Blonde (and she's a natural blonde, no matter _what_ Finn thinks)

**Eye Color: **Blue

**Hometown: **Lima, Ohio

**Known For**: Being anti-Lima, being head Cheerio (in her day), dating quarterback (of their time) Mark York, her beauty, her popularity, her sudden death.

**Audition Song: **"Popular" from "Wicked"

**Personality: **As you've read, Caroline is a _total _queen-bee type through and through, but the good news is that she grows. She's been known to be a great and supportive friend, but also secret keeping and back stabbing to people she doesn't like.

**Her relationship to…**

**Finn Hudson: **Caroline thinks that Finn is an idiot, but a he's _their _idiot.

**Rachel Berry: **You could say they go _way_ back… (More on that in the story later on)

**Quinn Fabray: **Of course, Caroline tried to dethrone Quinn at first, but now the two seem to be getting used to each other…_kind of_.

**Puck: **Secretly, Caroline admires Puck's badassness.

**Kurt Hummel: **The two can often be found debating Vera Wang VS Alexander McQueen. Enough said.

**Biggest Regret: **Bad choices that she made in her past life that will be revealed later in the story.

**Worst offence: **Keeping a super secret diary that is now coincidentally lost…

**xXxXxXxXxXxXx**

**Full Name: **Marcus Edward York

**Portrayed By: **Avan Jogia (but with green eyes)

**Preferred Name:** Mark

**Gender: **Male

**DOB: **November 5th, 1964

**Height: **He's tall, but not as tall as Finn…think Puck's height.

**Weight: **Umm…just think Mike Chang's abs.

**Hair Color: **Dark brown

**Eye Color: **Green

**Hometown: **Lima, Ohio

**Known For: **Being the star football player, being dyslexic, dating Caroline Johnson the head Cheerio (of their time), his hotness, his abs, his popularity, his sudden death

**Audition Song: **You'll see when (or if) he joins New Directions!

**Personality: **Mark won't deny that he hates school, and would much rather spend his time on more important things…like football and girls! He's pretty much an even mix between Finn and Puck.

**His relationship to…**

**Finn Hudson and Puck: **You'll see when football tryouts start!

**Rachel Berry: **Just like Caroline, they go way back… (More on that later on in the story)

**Artie Abrams: **Mark thinks that it's totally awesome that Artie's on the football team even though he's in a wheel car, and has a weird form of respect for the nerd.

**Quinn Fabray: **Mark thinks that he likes that someone else knows their secret…

**Mike Chang: **Mark can out dance Mike any day!

**Brittany S. Pears: **She's a blonde Cheerio just like his girlfriend, and Mark feels like Brittany is a like a small child and just has to be taken by the hand and shown the way.

**Biggest regret: **You'll find that out later on in the story.

**Worst offence: **Basking in his and Caroline's popularity.


	9. Football Tryouts

**So did you like the OC profiles? As my OCs get more important to the story, I'll add more! Remember: Reviews are love. :) Thanks and enjoy!**

"Well, you know what they say about hope. It breeds eternal misery." –_Pretty Little Liars_

"Some friends won't stick around, but there are some friends that will. They will and more, even. Even death cannot separate these friends. Pity that these are the rarest kind of friend." –Author Unknown

"Surround yourself with people who are going to lift you higher." –Oprah

_Chapter Seven_

_Puck's POV_

"Think fast, Puckerman!" At the ring of Sam's voice, a football was thrown at me. I caught it no problem, and looked back at Sam, who was kind of freaking out. Hey, no one said tryouts would be easy. I chucked the ball back at him, and he caught it with a fumble.

"You gotta be better than that!" I yelled to him. "You want to make the team or not?"

"Yeah I do!" Sam yelled, jogging over to me. "And…I will!" He exclaimed. "I'm gonna make the team and actually play, not just sit on the bench for the whole game like you do!"

"Are you _asking _to get punched, Evans?"

"Whatever, Puck, I'm sure we'll both do fine. Coach Beiste is way cooler then that other guy ever was, and I know that when I got here after he had a nervous break down! All I'm sayin' is, we've got nothin' to worry about. Me and you and Finn and Artie are gonna be fine…even with this new kid."

"Wait…what new kid?"

"Oh, you didn't hear?" Sam shrugged. "There's this new transfer kid tryin' out. Guess he's really good or something."

"What's the guy's name?" I asked. "And how fast can we give him a slushie to the face?"

"'don't know," Sam shrugged again. "I've never seen him. I heard he came in with those five new kids from New York."

"Yeah…" I thought about that squeaky blonde who was with Quinn the other day, that sandy-haired drummer boy who's always in the music room and that girl who's been acting like she's Santana. "Aren't they kinda…off?"

"Off?"

"Ya' know, off…I mean, don't you think there's just something a little…weird about them?"

"Yeah, they all seemed kinda…sketchy to me." Sam whispered as we started to run around the track.

"Do ya' think should just check this guy out?" I asked.

"That's just what I asked Finn to do!"

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

_Finn's POV_

"…And, Mark, I don't think I like this whole 'football' thing. I mean, can't you get a concussion and then go into, like, cardiac arrest or something like that?"

"Caroline, look at me. I'm fine, see?" Mark spread out his arms. "See? Totally fine!"

"Whatever," Caroline rolled her eyes. "But I still don't like it. Why don't you do a _safer _extracurricular activity? Like, join Glee club with Rach and me!"

"Yeah, thanks a lot sweetie, but I'm gonna pass on that one."

"You don't know what you're missing!" Caroline sang. Mark left her in the building and ran out onto the field, catching up to me and Artie as I rolled him out to practice.

"Hey, you're Finn, right? Rachel's boyfriend?"

"Yup, that's me!" I said.

"And I'm Artie," Artie introduced himself. "Nice to meet you."

"You too, Artie," Mark smiled. "So, I was thinkin'," he started. "Could you guys help me out? I really don't know anyone, and I don't really plan on looking like a _total _loser…"

"No problem," I said, and pointed to Puck. "That guy's name is Noah, but everyone calls him Puck."

"Why?"

"Because his last name's Puckerman," Artie answered. "And that's Sam," Artie pointed the blonde kid out.

"And that guy over there is Mike," I concluded, pointed to Mike Chang.

"We don't like him." Artie deadpanned.

"Why not?" Mark asked

"It's…complicated…" I said.

"No it's not!" Artie yelled. "He stole my girlfriend!"

"So he broke the Guy Code?"

"_Yes_!" Artie spat. "Finally someone else sees it too!"

"Don't even worry about it Mark," I said. "I'm sure you'll fit right in! Hey, what position did you play before?"

"Quarterback,"

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

_Rachel's POV_

"Look Rachel, you're gonna have to tell him _sometime_, and sooner is better then later."

"There's nothing to tell, Caroline, because nothing's gonna happen. He solved the prophecy, remember?"

Caroline shrugged and rolled her eyes: "Whatever. If I were you, I'd give him a warning. It's not like this has ever happened before. We don't know _what's _going to happen!" After she said that, Caroline started to walk down the hall.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"To look for my diary! It's still lost ya' know!" I didn't say anything, so she added: "Look, I know I'm just one opinion. Go ask Kelly or Lucy or Justin. I'm just trying to help you, you know that right?"

"Caroline, sometimes, _your _form of helping doesn't help."

"Relax. I won't do anything."

I just looked at her.

"I promise!" She added. I didn't really know how to respond to that. It was true, though; she _was _just trying to help. She turned around with that devilish smile on her face that I'd come to know just a little too well over the years, and said:

"Now if you'll excuse me Rachel Berry, I've got thirty year old secrets to dig up."


	10. Thirty Year Old Secerts

**I know, I know, I know – I haven't updated to this fic in forever. But guess what? I've decided that I'm definitely going to continue this fic until the end, because I want too. Also, I'm going to bring in a couple more OCs from the past soon, and get some drama going! So, I hope you like this chapter, and remember to review! Thanks and enjoy.**

"_She sat and sang alway_

_By the green margin of a stream,_

_Watching the fishes leap and play_

_Beneath the glad sunbeam._

_I sat and wept alway_

_Beneath the moon's most shadowy beam,_

_Watching the blossoms of the May_

_Weep leaves into the stream._

_I wept for memory;_

_She sang for hope that is so fair:_

_My tears were swallowed by the sea;_

_Her songs died on the air._" – Christina Rossetti, "_She Sat and Sang_"

_Chapter Eight_

_Finn's POV_

"Hey Finn, great game last night!" Sam gave me a high-five as he passed by me in the halls. "_Awesome_, man!"

"Thanks," I smiled. "I'm just glad we won our first game. It's great for us and will welcome Mark to the team and all."

"Oh Mark feels welcome to the team!" Mark yelled as he made his way over to us. "That is, if we keep on wining!"

"Dude!" Puck yelled out, catching up to the three of us. He gave me a high-five like Sam did. "Last night was epic."

"Beiste is an awesome coach, way better then Ken!" I said. "I really think we're gonna start to win more and more!"

"Oh, you were talkin' 'bout the game?" Puck asked. "I was talkin' about how hot Quinn looks in her Cheerios uniform…but yeah, the game was cool too."

Last night we had our first football game of the season, and, guess what? We won in a landslide, and I can honestly say that we all had the most fun that any of us have had while playing football in a long time. Just then, Becky came around the corner, skipping in her Cheerios uniform.

"Mark," she said in her cute little voice. "Do you know where Caroline is?"

"Um, can't say that I do…but maybe she's in the halls with Rachel?" Mark shrugged. "Why do you ask, Becky?"

"Coach Sylvester wants to see her." Becky said before flashing a smile and skipping off.

"Oh crap," Mark whispered. "This can't be a good night for me. Do you think I should buy _Ben and Jerry's _or an uplifting chick-flick?"

"Oh, I'd go with the chick-flick," Puck said. "Whenever I buy Quinn ice cream when she's upset, she gets all annoyed and says: 'are you _trying _to get me fat, Puckerman?' and that _never_ ends good…"

"See, _that's _why I don't have a girlfriend right now!" Sam crossed his arms.

"Yeah," I laughed. "_That's _why."

**xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx**

_Rachel's POV_

"…So that's why cookie dough tastes better then the actual cookie!" Caroline finished with a smile. Kurt let out a small whistle. Tina bit her lip. Mercedes raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, that makes _no sense_…" I shook my head.

"But it's true!"

"Yeah, the cookie dough actually _does _taste way better then the cookie," Quinn said. "But are you sure _that's_ true, Caroline?"

"Oh it's totally true!" She beamed. "If you don't believe me, look it up online!" Quinn opened her mouth to protest, but stopped herself as we saw Becky sauntering down the hall, looking in our direction.

That could only mean one thing: Sue was angry.

"Follow me," Becky said as she walked between us, not even stopping. Caroline and I exchanged a glance, and followed Becky into Sue's office as we were told. When we walked into Sue's office, she had her back turned to us, probably just staring at her trophies again. Caroline sat right down, but I hesitated at first. Sue didn't spin around in her chair, so Caroline coughed:

"_Ahem_?" This made Sue spin around with an annoyed look on her face.

"Who you '_ahem_'ing, Blondie?"

"Well, you demand us to come here, so I'd think you'd actually acknowledge that we're in room. Isn't that correct, Coach Sylvester?" Caroline was giving Sue her evil-eyes-look, which always used to freak me out.

"I knew I recognized you from somewhere."

Oh crap.

"I…don't know what you mean!" Caroline gave a nervous smile.

"Of course you do, Blondie. Don't play stupid like your friend Brittany. You were my first Head Cheerio. I was twenty and I remember-"

"-Wait," I said. "Then that would make you fifty now, right?"

"Of course not Barbara, I'm twenty-nine!" Sue said quickly. "Anyway, you can have this back now, Blondie." She slid something across the table that looked like a notebook.

"That's my old diary!" Caroline exclaimed. "Where'd you find it?"

"It fell out of an old Cheerio's locker _years_ ago. I thought you'd want it back, Blondie. I only used it to catch up on gossip, but now of course this gossip is as dried up as William Shuester's hair probably gets when he neglects to shampoo and condition and all that jazz."

"Th-thank you…?" Caroline half said and half asked.

"Oh, and two might want this, too," Sue said, sliding us a piece of paper. The paper was a clipping from today's newspaper. The headline made us both gasp:

_**1980 Ohio School Shooting Case Reopened**_

**XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX**

"Caroline, where are you even going?"

"To tell the others!" She yelled; the paper in one hand, her old diary in the other. "Rachel, they might like the _scum _how _killed _us out of jail! I will _not _stand for that!"

"Oh, and what are you going to say? You know they did it 'cause you're one of the girls they killed? Do you even remember _who _had that gun? Because I don't!"

"It doesn't matter if those memories are fuzzy!" Caroline charged on. "They murdered us and might get a 'get-out-of-jail-free-card'! There's no way I'm letting that happen!" We walked through the hallway again and we saw Finn, Sam, Puck, and Mark.

"Marcus!" Caroline yelled. She only called him 'Marcus' when she was _really_ mad. Mark didn't even have time to respond before the paper was shoved in his face. He gave Caroline and I each a look before they – or, I guess, _we_ – marched off to the music room.

"Justin, look at this!" Caroline spat, making Justin look up from his drums. He gasped, pushing some sandy-brown hair out of his eyes.

"What're we gonna do?" He asked, looking to Caroline.

"What'd ya' think?" She demanded, bringing Justin along with us to the art room, where we found Lucy and Kelly chatting away.

"Guys, we have a problem!" Mark yelled, making them shut up and look up. Lucy flinched after reading the headline; Kelly gasped loudly.

"Wait, hold on a second!" I yelled. "Do any of us even remember that night? No! Our memories of that night are all fuzzy! For all we know, those guys _aren't _our killers! It could have been anyone!"

"So what do you have in mind then, Rachel, huh?" Mark raised an eyebrow. "You want us to solve our own murders?"

"Actually," Caroline brightened. "That's not a bad idea…"

**Review? Please? Please? **


	11. Take Me Or Leave Me

**Yes, this story is back. Be afraid, be very afraid. :) Reviews = love. :) No reviews = no love. :( Just saying. Just a head's up: more OCs will be brought in soon, which is exciting :) Lyrics in this chapter are **_**Take Me Or Leave Me **_**from **_**RENT**_**.**__**Thanks and enjoy.**

"_It's hard to tell your mind to stop loving someone when your heart still does._" – Author Unknown

"_Beauty without virtue is a flower without perfume_." – Author Unknown

_Chapter Nine_

_Rachel's POV_

Yesterday, the impossible happened.

It was pretty late at night when I got the text. Well, after I taught Caroline and the others what texting _was_. They didn't have _that_ thirty years ago! Anyway, the impossible happened. We were all so sure that they'd never break up – for thirty _freaking _years they cuddling and acting all couple-y every second they got – so, I mean, we were all sure they'd be in each other's arms for forever and eventually get married and have a big, cute family like on one of those cheesy sitcoms. But, no, apparently not anymore. Anyway, it was probably after midnight when I got the text, so that probably means they had a big blow out our something. _Not_. _Good_. But, then again, they fight all the time, but then get over it the next day or so and have a make out fest. Long story short, none of us knew what to think.

The text I got was from Caroline, and it said:

_I just had a fight with Mark. It's over for real this time._

_Caroline, you say that every time you think Mark's being over-protective or you bicker about stupid things. _I replied.

_But… … …STUPID THINGS? No, Rach, I'm serious. We just broke up._

_For real this time?_

_Yeah. For real._

_I'm so sorry. :( Do you need a pint of Benny and Jerry's?_

_No I don't want to be heartbroken AND fat. _

_:( I'm sorry Caroline._

_It's ok. I'm gonna go scream and cry into my pillow now._

_Do you need me to come over?_

_No. Bye._

And that was the end of the conversation.

"Finn? Finn, pick up!" I yelled to my phone before I heard his sleepy 'hello?' on the other end.

"Rach?" He yawned. "Wh-why are you c-calling so late?"

"Finn, Caroline and Mark just broke up, and-"

"And I would care this late because?"

"Oh yeah," I whispered. "I guess I forgot you didn't grow up with them. Sorry."

"'S ok Rachel. I'm gonna go back to sleep now, alright?"

"Okay," I laughed. "See ya' in the morning. Good night, Finn."

"'Night, Rach," he yawned again. "Love you."

"Love you too," I laughed again at how tired he was before hanging up the phone.

That's when I realized how weird it is that Finn didn't grow up with these people like I did. He didn't have the same memories as I did; he didn't do the same things when he was a kid as I did. When you think about it, it really is a _generation _of difference. And that was…pretty weird. And, then, it also hit me that Finn wasn't there for a lot of things. He wasn't there when _I _was in high school, he wasn't there when we were killed, he wasn't there for thirty long years when we were just sitting there, waiting, totally unseen by anyone. Well, expect him. He wasn't there for any of that at all. And…I wasn't there to grow up with him, to go to school with him, or…_anything_. Compared to how well I know Caroline or Mark or even Justin, Finn could basically be considered a stranger. And compared to how well Finn knows Puck or Quinn or even Santana, _I _could basically be considered a stranger to _him_.

Even though all that is true…I love him. And he loves me.

These things never make any sense.

I grabbed my phone again and opened a new text. The screen read:

_New Text to: Finn_

_I love you, too. Really. Just wanted to remind you. 3 – Rach*_

xXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

The next day, Santana walked into the choir room, hand and hand with Mark. Caroline, Finn and I walked in just to see them kiss goodbye.

"That's it!" Caroline yelled, rolling up her sleeves. "I'm gonna _kill_ that bitch!" She ran at Santana, but Finn held her back. Caroline and Santana started clawing at each other, and everyone was screaming.

"Hey! Hey! _HEY_!" Finn yelled, making everyone silent. "Shut up, _shut up _you guys!" He was still holding back Caroline, who was clenching her fist.

"Don't you think we have more important things to worry about?" I looked at Caroline and then Mark, and raised an eyebrow. "Remember?"

We heard Mr. Schue's footsteps, followed by his whistling, and we all sat down like nothing out of the ordinary was happening at all. Santana pulled Mark down next to her, even though he tried to get away.

"Good morning, Mr. Schuster!" We all sang with smiles plastered onto our faces.

"'Mornin' guys! Now first-" Mr. Schue stopped when he saw that we had one extra New Direction in the room. "Oh, hi there. It's Max, right?"

"Mark, actually," Mark corrected. "But I'll just be on my way now, so…"

"Mark, if you want to join glee club, I'll you have to do is audition! There's nothing to be afraid of, we're all friends here!" Mr. Schue smiled his 'supportive teacher' smile.

"Yeah, Mark," I spoke up. "Go ahead, audition for us!"

"Yeah, Mark," Caroline repeated, a devilish smile on her face. "Here, _I'll help you_!" Then she got up, walked over to Brad the piano guy, whispered something in his ear, and smiled. Brad gave her a thumbs up, so Caroline marched in front of the room, head held high, while Mark just looked plain afraid. He didn't have much time to react before Caroline started singing.

"_Every single day,_

_I walk down the street_

_I hear people say 'baby so sweet'_

_Ever since puberty,_

_Everybody stares at me_

_Boys, girls, I can't help it baby_

_So be kind, and don't lose your mind_

_Just remember that I'm your baby_!

_Take me for what I am_

_Who I was meant to be_

_And if you give a damn_

_Take me baby,_

_Or leave me_!

_Take me or leave me_!" She took a breath and then started:

"_A tiger in a cage_

_Can never see the sun_

_This diva needs her stage_

_Baby, lets have fun_!

_You are the one I choose, _

_Folks would kill to fill your shoes_!

_You love the limelight too, now baby,_

_So be mine and don't waste my time cryin'_

_'Honey bear are you still my, my, my baby?'_

_Take me for what I am_

_Who I was meant to be_

_And if you give a damn_

_Take me baby or leave me_

_No way, can I be what I'm not_

_But hey, don't you want your girl hot?_

_Oh, don't fight, don't lose your head_

_'Cause every night who's in your bed?_

_Who?_

_Who's in your bed?_" Caroline stopped singing, with way too many '_ooh_!'s from all across the room.

"Okay, fine!" Mark yelled. "You want me to sing, _fine_!" Then, he really did open his mouth and sing:

"_It won't work_

_I look before I leap_

_I love margins and discipline_

_I make list in my sleep baby_

_What's my sin?_

_Never quit_

_I follow through_

_I hate mess but I love you_

_What do with my improptu baby?_

_So be wise 'cause this guy satisfies_

_You got a prize but don't compromise_

_Your one lucky baby_

_Take me for what I am_

_Who I was meant to be_

_And if you give a damn_

_Take me baby or leave me_!" Then, for the last part of the song, they sang together:

"_That's it_

_The straw that breaks my back_

_I quit_

_Unless you take it back_!

_Take me for what I am_

_Who I was meant to be_

_Who I was meant to be_

_And if you give a damn_

_And if you give a damn then_

_Take me baby, or leave me_

_Take me baby, take me or leave me_

_Take me baby or leave me!_"


End file.
